Today (Thursday): The sun does its best but the cold air wins this round. Highs only reach the mid-upper 40s. Winds are minimal which is a plus. Look for no more than a few high clouds late afternoon. Confidence: High

Tonight: This would be a notably colder night but increasing clouds blanket us late and halt the fall. Lows range from low-to-mid 30s. Confidence: High

Tomorrow (Friday): The clouds are in firm control with light winds from the south. There are likely to be a few showers passing to our north but a stray one could dip down later in the day (20% chance). Seasonable highs of upper 40s to lower 50s can be expected. Confidence: Medium-High

Tomorrow night: This evening marks the earliest sunset of the year but with clouds obscuring it, darkness sets in even faster. There is a 30% chance of a light shower through much of the night. Lows remain in the low-to-mid 40s. Confidence: Medium-High

A LOOK AHEAD

Saturday is a great day temperature-wise with highs in the upper 50s to lower 60s but clouds are ever present. Showers are likely to be moving up just off the East Coast and more lurk in the Appalachians. With a little luck we avoid both bands. There is still a 20% chance of a stray shower. Overnight readings are not bad either with lows in the mid-to-upper 40s. Confidence: Medium-High

Sunday continues the string of days with cloud covered skies and a slight (30%) chance of showers. Even if you get caught, amounts should be light and duration short. We are on the warm side of the front and highs should be mainly in the upper 50s. Overnight lows remain mild under the blanket of clouds ranging through the mid-to-upper 40s. Confidence: Medium

Monday could actually have a few peeks of sun and highs ramp up to the mid-to-upper 60s as a result. A very strong cold front approaches late in the day bringing a 60% chance of showers by evening rush. Confidence: Medium

David Streit grew up on a farm/ranch in Nebraska. Witness to severe weather of all varieties focused his career path. Degrees from the universities of Nebraska and Wisconsin prepared him to be a forecaster for Capital Weather Gang as well as his day job as COO of Commodity Weather Group.

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